Every 2001-02 NBA playoff series, three ways: the season race carried on into the postseason, who beat their seeding, and the bracket.
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The same race these clubs ran all season, carried on through the postseason on one scale and on real dates.
Where each club finished the season against how far it went, ranked on record rather than seed.
Who played whom, round by round, which no line chart can say.
Los Angeles Lakers won the 2001-02 title from a regular season record of 58-24. 16 teams reached the playoffs and the bracket ran 4 rounds. Every series below is taken from NBA.com; nothing on this page is estimated.
| Round | Won by | Result | Opponent | Played |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round | Sacramento Kings | 3-1 in games | Utah Jazz | April 20 to April 29, 2002 |
| First round | Los Angeles Lakers | 3-0 in games | Portland Trail Blazers | April 21 to April 28, 2002 |
| First round | San Antonio Spurs | 3-2 in games | Seattle SuperSonics | April 20 to May 3, 2002 |
| First round | Dallas Mavericks | 3-0 in games | Minnesota Timberwolves | April 21 to April 28, 2002 |
| First round | New Jersey Nets | 3-2 in games | Indiana Pacers | April 20 to May 2, 2002 |
| First round | Detroit Pistons | 3-2 in games | Toronto Raptors | April 21 to May 2, 2002 |
| First round | Boston Celtics | 3-2 in games | Philadelphia 76ers | April 21 to May 3, 2002 |
| First round | Charlotte Hornets | 3-1 in games | Orlando Magic | April 20 to April 30, 2002 |
| Conf. semifinals | Sacramento Kings | 4-1 in games | Dallas Mavericks | May 4 to May 13, 2002 |
| Conf. semifinals | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-1 in games | San Antonio Spurs | May 5 to May 14, 2002 |
| Conf. semifinals | New Jersey Nets | 4-1 in games | Charlotte Hornets | May 5 to May 15, 2002 |
| Conf. semifinals | Boston Celtics | 4-1 in games | Detroit Pistons | May 5 to May 14, 2002 |
| Conf. finals | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-3 in games | Sacramento Kings | May 18 to June 2, 2002 |
| Conf. finals | New Jersey Nets | 4-2 in games | Boston Celtics | May 19 to May 31, 2002 |
| The Finals | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-0 in games | New Jersey Nets | June 5 to June 12, 2002 |
The left column ranks this field by regular season record, not by seed number: seeding rules differ by era, so this site uses records everywhere instead. The right column groups clubs by the round they went out in, which is not the same as the number of rounds they won, because a bye carries a club further without it winning anything. The figure beside a name is places moved between the two columns, and part of it is only where a club sat inside its band. Nothing here is a prediction. The data notes carry the whole method.